We are all books waiting to be read

An essay by Story

The Descent and power of Ignorance 

In 2020 we have seen Democratic Socialists be compared to Nazis [1], Centrists attempting to maintain onto fading power [2] [2.1], and more rigged games that gamble the lives of the vulnerable….again [3] [4] [5] [6] (how unsurprising!). I think we can all agree that the electoral system is a very very dated and meaningless system right? I mean we have wonderful things such as voter suppression [7] [8], Gerrymandering [9] [10], and Lobbying [11] [12] [12.1] [12.2]. Nowadays we see historical ignorance from people who want to get into office [13], A senator who opposed gay marriage and only supported it when it got him votes [14] [15] and let’s not forget that this same man in the 70s helped defund prison education [16] (a helpful tool to help incarcerated people re-enter society safely [17]).

The ideologies that most moderates that run for presidents use is Neoliberalism [18] specifically New Democrats [19] [20] with the exception of Sanders (as he is a Democratic Socialist [21]). This ideology has hindered any genuine social change all for more power to the ruling class and resurrected fascism worldwide [22] [23] people overlook fascism and forget the fact that Hitler was democratically elected [24] and that a massive reason why he won support was that his speeches effectively resonated with the German people [25]. People still genuinely think that just putting a ballot in a box will create permanent change when all we do is give votes for electors [26] that can be legally influenced and betray people on whims [27] this system of power that holds us down has created what Noam Chomsky calls a “Radical Insurgency” of Conservatives [28] [29] which inevitably leads to a fascist pipeline [30] and the political game of ‘compromise’ where their gambling chips are human rights and our chances of surviving through the 6th Mass Extinction [31] [32] [33] [34].

Acción y Comunidad

“Monstruo que come los muertos

Monstruo que tiene la culpa

Monstro que mames externo

Y te mato monstro

No soy, tu actividad

No soy, tu claridad

No soy, tu identidad

¿me acuerdas?

She’s brown!

She’s smart!” – Downtown Boys

“I don’t want to be equal

‘Cause I know I’m fuckin’ better than you

Your moderation is lethal

Get out of my way, let me do what I need to

There’s no protection that this nation-state can offer to me

Just olive branches to the cis white gay bourgeoisie

So fuck off with your rainbow-striped American flags

The only colors that I need are the pink and the black” – Dog Park Dissidents 

“You complain about your major, that you don’t know what to do

I know exactly what I want, but it’ll never come true

L.M.S, retweet, your life is a performance piece, your audience is fast asleep

‘Cause you are boring, just like me”

  – Graduating Life 

“It makes no sense to me to be dead-eyed at 23 

Making cash, waiting for life to happen 

Heaven’s a basement show in Pennsylvania 

Hell’s back home giving up with you 

I’d rather be stuck in a van forever 

Than, never see anything through” – Not Half Bad

“Some of those that workforces are the same that burn crosses” – Rage Against The Machine 

If social progress for any marginalized group or person wants to be seen we must organize [1] we have to call out bigots [2] and educate ourselves and those around us [3] [4]. We live in a time where College Debt has created its own crisis [5], both teachers are in a national shortage [6] and underpaid [7], and students like me live in a time where school shootings are normal for us and a lurking threat of everyday life [8] [8.1].

Anti-Fascism is an important step towards helping people stay safe in this world, we have to teach our students their rights, treat them as humans, and really let them know that they are not alone! A presentation about bullying isn’t going to be enough for people to digest that if anything at times it reflects the disdain for others that some people have towards one another [9] adds this to the ineffective “0 tolerance policies” of schools [10] [10.1] and we can see the amount of damage that these haunting ghosts of society and hatred have on us [10.2] [10.3] [10.4] [10.5] [10.6] [10.7] [10.8] [10.9] [10.10].

Negating Apathy to make a change: A 4-year reflection

In 2016 middle school was hell, it was the first time I had seen the first-hand effects of politics, November 8th,2016 the day of my birthday I went to the hall greeted with the screaming of students at each other of who would win the election..on that day my birthday gift was to go to the polling station and vote with my dad (keep in mind this was before I had really gotten into anarchism) and that same day old people walked around and gave us miniature bibles and some kids that sat outside the school would ask “who are you voting for?”. That night Clinton lost despite having the popular vote and that same night a lot of things changed.

My life had to adjust to new norms I never really understood why everyone is so apathetic and unworldly towards politics and views it as this ominous ghost that plagues people, soon I understood why…Fast forward to about mid-2017 the first piece of anarchist literature I read was Queering Anarchism by Deric Shannon it helped me understand my identity and the world around me and help make sense of the overlapping environments and systems that make me who I am, middle-class people (from my view) are very much desensitized and not as concerned about the world around them but, this probably has to do with the fact that the higher up you are in classist societies the more you are expected to fit and uphold the status quo I’m one of those exceptions you could say as I have always defied the expectations and norms of things I mean…. I was born fighting just to live. I was born at 7 ½ months with a lot of disabilities and not supposed to make it out of my mother’s womb alive yet after months of being put in machines, 24/7 watches, and nerve trauma experiences (which affect me to this day) I made it. Anyways to get back on track that same year Unite The Right Charlottesville [1] happened from there I felt the impact of far-right normalization blues [2] and I slowly after from here to there doing a reading on my own time understood that liberalism would be no different besides the party was originally called the Democratic-Republican Party [3] and that the saviorism that Obama is painted by wasn’t the full picture [4] [5]. People like me are coerced to be indoctrinated by evidentially biased history lessons [6] [7] and videos we had to watch like this [8] [8.1] [8.2] [8.3] these biased lessons undermine the inherent complexity and diversity of politics [9] [10] [11].

Now 2 years after more research, reading and writing I see that same process repeat itself in 2016 we all felt that “this election matters and will fundamentally change everything” yet 4 years later it seems that nothing has changed as we are still mindless apathetic beings and those that care are only those who are in danger and minorities. In 1968 May France [12] civil unrest occurred and yet 40+ years later it still feels like we have that revolutionary energy and we can’t seem to destroy the apathy that is forced into us yet so many years later anarchists and rebels always find a way out [13] [14] [15] [16].